Carbon Intensity Reduction Research Articles

The Impact of Green Finance Pilot Policy on Carbon Intensity in Chinese Cities—Based on the Synthetic Control Method

As an innovative and efficient approach, green finance unlocks the potential to achieve China’s carbon peak and neutrality goals. This study takes China’s Green Finance Pilot Scheme as a quasi-natural experience and adopts the synthetic control method to evaluate the carbon intensity reduction effects of the Green Finance Pilot Policy (GFPP) based on the city-level panel data in China from 2008 to 2019. We find that the GFPP significantly reduces the carbon intensity of pilot cities in eastern China, such as Guangzhou, Huzhou, and Quzhou. However, implementing GFPP does not achieve the desired reduction effect in Nanchang and Guiyang situated in central and western China. After multiple robustness tests, it can be proved that the preceding conclusions are robust. The mechanism analysis results show that the GFPP can promote carbon intensity reduction through financial agglomeration and green innovation. This study is conducive to assessing the policy effectiveness of China’s GFPP and provides empirical evidence for promoting green finance system construction in China.

Energy regulation, energy innovation, and carbon intensity nexus in China: A nonlinear perspective

Considering the role of energy regulations and innovations in reducing energy-driven emissions, our main objective is to scrutinize the influence of energy regulations and innovations on carbon intensity in China over the period 1991–2020. In contrast to the previous studies, the analysis also focuses on the asymmetry assumption. The scientific value added to this study lies in its innovative methods and empirical evidence. The autoregressive distributed lag model, both linear and nonlinear, is utilized in the research to examine the short- and long-run estimates. The linear model highlights that energy regulations, energy innovations, and human capital reduce carbon intensity in the long run, while per capita income and financial development escalate it. However, only energy regulations and human capital help reduce carbon intensity in the short term. In the nonlinear models, the positive shock in environmental regulations reduces carbon intensity in short and long run. Conversely, the positive shock in energy innovations reduces carbon intensity in the long run. Negative shocks in energy regulations and innovations have a statistically insignificant impact on carbon intensity in both the short and long term. In addition, per capita income and financial development only increase carbon intensity in the long run, while human capital reduces carbon intensity in the short run. These findings advocate for implementing heavy energy taxes on firms and industries that rely heavily on fossil fuels. Increasing investment in green energy innovations is the need of the hour in lowering carbon intensity in China.

Contribution to net zero emissions of integrating hydrogen production in wastewater treatment plants

The reliability of renewable hydrogen supply for off-take applications is critical to the future sustainable energy economy. Integrated water electrolysis can be deployed at distributed municipal wastewater treatment plants (WWTP), creating opportunity for reduction in carbon emissions through direct and indirect use of the electrolysis output. A novel energy shifting process where the co-produced oxygen is compressed and stored to enhance the utilisation of intermittent renewable electricity is analysed. The hydrogen produced can be used in local fuel cell electric buses to replace incumbent diesel buses for public transport. However, quantifying the extent of carbon emission reduction of this conceptual integrated system is key. In this study, the integration of hydrogen production at a case study WWTP of 26,000 EP capacity and using the hydrogen in buses was compared with two conventional systems: the base case of a WWTP with grid electricity consumption offset by solar PV and the community's independent use of diesel buses for transport, and the non-integrated configuration with hydrogen produced at the bus refuelling location operated independently of the WWTP. The system response was analysed using a Microsoft Excel simulation model with hourly time steps over a 12-month time frame. The model included a control scheme for the reliable supply of hydrogen for public transport and oxygen to the WWTP, and considered expected reductions in carbon intensity of the national grid, level of solar PV curtailment, electrolyser efficiency and size of the solar PV system. Results showed that by 2031, when Australia's national electricity is forecast to achieve a carbon intensity of less than 0.186 kg CO2-e/kWh, integrating water electrolysis at a municipal WWTP for producing hydrogen for use in local hydrogen buses produced less carbon emissions than continuing to use diesel buses and offsetting emissions by exporting renewable electricity to the grid. By 2034, an annual reduction of 390 t–CO2–e is expected after changing to the integrated configuration. Considering electrolyser efficiency improvements and curtailment of renewable electricity, the reduction increases to 872.8 t–CO2–e.

Reducing Carbon Intensity of Food and Fuel Production Whilst Lowering Land-Use Impacts of Biofuels

Science and technology are critical for developing novel and sustainable production of food, fuel, and chemicals in a manner that significantly reduces anthropogenic contributions to climate change. Although renewable energy is gradually displacing fossil fuels for grid energy, oil-based transport fuels remain major contributors to global greenhouse gas emissions. Currently, bioethanol and biodiesel can partially replace petroleum, but these renewables are far from perfect in terms of long-term sustainability and the volumetric expansion needed to fully replace oil. Biofuels made in biorefineries using sugars or oils derived from plants grown on prime food-producing land only partly offset CO2 emissions relative to petroleum and present problems with respect to land-use change. Here, we provide alternative ideas for lignocellulosic biorefineries that coproduce bioethanol, nutritious protein-rich yeast biomass for animal feeds, and carbon-rich solid residuals that represent green coal or sequestered carbon. A concept of how these biorefineries could be linked to renewable power-to-X, where X can be bioethanol, protein, sequestered carbon, or multiple carbon-carbon based synthetic fuels and chemicals, is presented. We also discuss aspects of the present and future roles for microorganisms in lignocellulosic biorefineries and power-to-X bio/chemical refineries.

Can China’s transfer payment in key ecological function areas reduce the carbon intensity? – Quasi – Natural experimental evidence from Jiangxi, China

Reducing carbon intensity while sustaining economic growth is a major challenge for China's ecological civilization construction in the context of global warming. China’s transfer payment policy in National Key Ecological Function areas plays a crucial role in promoting ecological improvement and reducing local carbon intensity. In this study, we examine the impact of transfer payment policies on carbon intensity in Jiangxi Province, a demonstration area for national ecological civilization, and we further investigate the carbon reduction mechanism and the spatial spillover effect of the policies. Results show the following: (1) the transfer payment policy in key ecological function areas has significantly reduced the carbon intensity, and the research conclusion is still valid after the robustness test; (2) the transfer payment policy in key ecological function areas reduces the carbon intensity by promoting the upgrading of industrial structure; (3) the transfer payment policy in key ecological function areas has a significant role in promoting the reduction of carbon intensity in this region and the adjacent regions. The findings highlight the significant promoting role of transfer payment policies in key ecological function zones on carbon emission reduction in both local and neighboring areas. It also underscores the importance of expanding policy coverage, establishing horizontal ecological compensation mechanisms, exploring multidimensional approaches to carbon reduction, and fostering cross-regional exchanges and cooperation. These insights provide valuable guidance for policymakers working towards effective and sustainable carbon emission reduction.

A way forward to end energy poverty in China: Role of carbon-cutting targets and net-zero commitments

This paper investigates the impact of carbon-cutting targets and net-zero commitments on energy poverty (EP) in China, taking into account technological innovation (TECH), energy consumption (EC), urbanization (UR), and economic growth (GDP). Using panel data from 30 Chinese cities covering the period 2004–2017, we apply the MM-QR and Non-Causality techniques (Juodis et al., 2021) to obtain robust empirical results. Our analysis reveals that the effect of carbon-cutting targets weakens from the 10th to the 90th quintile, suggesting that some Chinese provinces have successfully reduced carbon intensity and are moving towards a net-zero CO2 emission. Furthermore, our findings indicate that economic growth and patent filings contribute to reducing energy poverty in the selected provinces, while total energy consumption and urbanization tend to increase energy poverty across different quantiles. Based on these results, we propose innovative policy recommendations aimed at ending energy poverty in China.

Digital transformation and carbon intensity reduction in transportation industry: Empirical evidence from a global perspective

Digital transformation has become an inevitable trend in industrial development, but research on its environmental benefits has not been conducted in-depth. This paper focuses on the impact and mechanisms of the digital transformation of the transportation industry on its carbon intensity. Empirical tests are conducted based on the panel data of 43 economies from 2000 to 2014. The results show that the digital transformation of the transportation industry reduces its carbon intensity, but only the digital transformation that relies on domestic digital sources is significant. Second, technological progress, upgrading the industry's internal structure and improving energy consumption are the main channels through which the digital transformation of the transportation industry reduces its carbon intensity. Third, in terms of subdividing industries, the digital transformation of basic transportation has a more significant effect on reducing carbon intensity. For segmentation digitization, the carbon intensity reduction from digital infrastructure is more significant. This paper serves as a reference for countries to formulate development policies for the transportation industry and implement the Paris Agreement.

Research on the Impact of Green Credit on Carbon Emission and Mechanism Analysis

Green credit policy is one of the important measures to promote the green transformation of economy and society and achieve the double carbon goal, which has developed rapidly in recent years. The sample was selected from 30 provinces and cities in China (excluding Tibet) from 2008 to 2019 to empirically investigate the effect of green credit on carbon emission intensity, and the study found that (1) green credit reduces carbon emission and plays a role in environmental protection. (2) Green credits act on carbon emissions through three major mediating variables: scale, technology, and structural effects, respectively, and ultimately reduce carbon intensity. This study provides a scientific basis for the formulation of green credit policy in China's energy conservation and emission reduction policy, and proposes policy measures to give full play to green credit to improve the quality and enthusiasm of economic and social growth, and to transform the economic development model to promote green economic development.

DS02 British Society for Dermatological Surgery sustainability guidance

Abstract Skin surgery and the patient pathway for those with skin cancer significantly contribute to the climate crisis. Dermatological surgeons recognize the role of global climate change as a significant contributor to increasing skin cancer rates and hence increase service demand. The British Society for Dermatological Surgery (BSDS) sustainability subgroup’s aim is to facilitate the integration of sustainability within all levels of service provision through the development of national sustainability guidance. We systematically searched MEDLINE, Embase, Google Scholar and the grey literature for English-language published articles related to sustainability in skin surgery. Relevant selected evidence-based articles were critically evaluated for inclusion by 11 authors and, if sufficiently rigorous, were included in the final recommendations. The guidance then underwent multiple iterations of appraisal by the guidance development group consisting of expert consultant dermatologists and Mohs surgeons, trainees and patient–public involvement. A system-wide change in service provision is required to reduce long-term service demand. This can be achieved through a focus on skin cancer prevention, patient education and facilitating early recognition of skin cancer in primary care. Another aspect includes encouraging patient empowerment through self-monitoring, thus reducing the frequency of follow-up. Lean dermatology service delivery reduces waste by utilizing efficiency, optimizing teledermatology and one-stop see-and-treat clinics, reducing travel distances, using electronic health records and identifying unnecessary/missed appointments. Reducing carbon intensity involves using low-carbon alternatives for patient/staff transport, sustainable staff food options and a wider review of procurement and supply chain that reflects sustainable trade standards. Skin surgery must re-evaluate its consumption and waste, involving reusable equipment and surgical clothing, opting for repair over machinery replacement, reducing single-use sets and using absorbable sutures and single-wrapped biodegradable packaging. Departments should preserve water used in surgery/handwashing, conserve electricity and use renewable energy sources, in addition to surgical waste management through segregation, recycling, proper disposal of environmentally harmful waste and surgical smoke evacuation. Dermatological surgery departments can advocate system-wide change by establishing a sustainability policy, which incorporates departmental sustainability education for their staff, prioritizing waste auditing and life cycle assessments and encouraging ethical purchasing. Further skin surgery sustainability research and innovation are necessary to encourage circular economy solutions for consumables and equipment use and develop sustainability quality-improvement projects and new methods of sustainable dermatological surgery service delivery. The BSDS sustainability guidance is publicly available (https://bsds.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/2022-BSDS_Sustainability_Guidance.pdf) to inform and inspire dermatological surgery sustainability.

A research on the policies to realise carbon intensity targets in China

In the context of carbon peaking and neutrality, it would be interesting to study the policy conditions for achieving carbon targets. From a technical perspective, this study constructed a theoretical model of the relationship between energy tax policy, R&D subsidy policy, and energy intensity within the framework of biassed technical change. Subsequently, through the logical relationship between energy and carbon intensities, three combination policy schemes for achieving the carbon intensity target were obtained. The findings are as follows: First, a higher rate of energy tax and R&D subsidy is destined to lead to a lower energy intensity, and energy tax policy can better boost energy intensity than R&D subsidy policy. Second, in terms of pulling the carbon intensity, the effect of the energy tax policy is better than that of the R&D subsidy policy, but in terms of its impact on the future policy effect, the R&D subsidy policy is better than the energy tax policy. Third, China should adopt a combination of policies to reduce carbon intensity, with a certain increase in the energy tax policy and a certain increase in the R&D subsidy rate policy.

The Impact of Digital Enterprise Agglomeration on Carbon Intensity: A Study Based on the Extended Spatial STIRPAT Model

The digital economy has broken the physical space limit, reshaped factor input ratios, and accelerated factor mobility, which drives carbon reduction and social sustainability. Digital enterprise agglomeration is becoming the new tendency and a significant spatial feature for digital economy development. This work aimed to study the impact of digital enterprise agglomeration on carbon intensity. This study first proposed an extended spatial stochastic IPAT (STIRPAT) theoretical framework and regarded digital enterprise agglomeration as a technology factor. Secondly, by building a dataset with 7,902,050 digital enterprises and using the distance-based Duranton and Overman index, this study evaluated the digital enterprise agglomeration of 278 cities from 2007 to 2017 in China. Thirdly, by matching micro digital enterprise data and macro city data, this study employed spatial Durbin, mediating, and moderating effects models to test the impact and mechanism of digital enterprise agglomeration on carbon intensity. There are four main findings: (1) There is a negative “U-shaped” correlation between digital enterprise agglomeration and local and neighboring cities’ carbon intensities, and the impact of neighboring digital enterprise agglomeration on local carbon intensity is more significant than the effect of regional digital enterprise agglomeration on local carbon intensity. (2) The impact of digital enterprise agglomeration on carbon intensity shows great differences under spatial, resource, industrial, and financial heterogeneity. (3) Digital enterprise agglomeration indirectly impacts carbon intensity in two ways: the green technology innovation effect and the industry structure rationalization effect. (4) Human capital enhances the role of digital enterprise agglomeration in reducing carbon intensity, whereas government intervention weakens the effect of digital enterprise agglomeration in decreasing carbon intensity. This paper suggests that digital enterprise agglomeration strategies should be dynamically adjusted based on local digital economy development and resource conditions.

Climate agreements and carbon intensity: Towards increased production efficiency and technical progress?

Dozens of studies point to evidence of significant reductions in carbon emissions driven by climate agreements, such as the Paris climate agreement. However, these studies fail to answer a pertinent question, that is, are global carbon emission reductions due to reduced production activities or are production processes becoming more efficient as less carbon is emitted per unit output due to technical progress? Such an understanding is important to evaluate the tension between environmental quality and economic growth. Therefore, drawing on difference-in-differences approaches, our results suggest a significant decline in global carbon emission intensity due to the 2015 Paris climate agreement, which is estimated at a 4.1% reduction on average over the sample period. Our evidence also shows that while some countries may be too poor to generate meaningful outcomes from climate agreements, the associated rate of reduction in carbon intensity in others tends to decline above a certain income threshold. These results imply that although there has been a worldwide increase in production efficiency and technical progress, at least owing to the Paris climate agreement, reaching net zero carbon emissions globally requires new approaches, especially for the very poor countries relative the ones at the top of the income ladder.

How to Improve Industrial Green Total Factor Productivity under Dual Carbon Goals? Evidence from China

This paper focuses on the relationship between green credit and industrial green total factor productivity under the dual carbon target. In recent years, weather extremes that break historical extremes have occurred frequently around the world, and the resulting loss of life and property has deepened people’s concern about climate change. As a responsible developing country, China has set the goal of reaching peak carbon emissions and reducing carbon intensity by 60–65% by 2030. In this context, based on China’s provincial-level data from 2006 to 2019, this paper first measures the growth rate of industrial green total factor productivity using the SBM-ML model, and then analyzes the impact of green credit on industrial green total factor productivity under the double carbon target by constructing the transmission mechanism of the energy consumption structure and the regulation mechanism of environmental regulation on green credit. We then analyze the impact of green credit on industrial green total factor productivity under the dual carbon target by constructing the transmission mechanism of the energy consumption structure and the regulation mechanism of environmental regulation on green credit. We find that green credit can improve the energy consumption structure and thus increase industrial green total factor productivity. In addition, the study finds that the interaction effect of green credit and environmental regulation suppresses the positive impact of green credit on industrial green TFP. This paper provides empirical evidence and policy implications for the orderly promotion of carbon peaking and carbon neutral efforts to effectively improve industrial green total factor productivity and promote high-quality economic development.

Evaluation of Energy Efficiency Existing Ship Index (EEXI) on Container Ship in Indonesian Shipping

CO2 has been one of the biggest contributors of Green House Effect, crippling the ozone of our own earth over the years. Ships, as the biggest transportation mode in the world, estimated to produce 1,046 millioin tonnes of CO2 approximately 3,3% from the total of CO2 emission across the globe. International Maritime Organization, through Marine Pollution (Annex VI) convention, has set a goal to reach carbon intensity reduction by 40% on 2030 and 100% by 2100. Furthermore, by 2023, a similar but novel regulation would be forced entry for those more than 400 GT existing ships which called “Energy Efficiency for Existing Ship” (EEXI). NKClass stated, about 6050 ships would be further regulated and 80% of NKClass Container vessel would need to be “Technically” adjusted in order to comply with the regulation and CO2 reducing program. “EPL” is one of the ways to achieve it. In this study, one of Indonesian Container Vessel would be analysed in the face of EEXI. With the calculation being done, a good understanding on how ship owner and other stakeholders must do, in order to comply with CO2 reduction programme while maintaining the best performance and business process as it can, might be more cleared.

Decarbonization through carbon intensity mitigation: evidence from global and income-based panels

Along with emission reduction targets, carbon abatement policies increasingly target the reduction of carbon intensity. In this context, uncovering factors that reduce carbon intensity is a timely research subject and carries significant policy implications. The goal of this study is to explore the dynamic relationships between carbon and energy intensity, renewable energy, economic development, structural transformation, and globalization in a global panel comprising 126 countries and two income-based subpanels. Robust System-GMM estimators indicate that increasing renewable sources in the energy mix can assist countries in mitigating the carbon intensity of electricity generation. Moreover, current results highlight that economic growth is the most effective mitigating factor of carbon intensity at the global level, revealing that on average, countries have managed to decouple economic and pollution (carbon intensity) growth. Results document these links both in the short-and, most importantly, the long-run setting. Other important results reveal that the mitigating effect of renewable energy is stronger with the increase of economic development, whereas structural transformation only decreases carbon intensity in low- and middle-income countries. Consequently, consistent long-term climate policies that promote these mitigating factors and decrease documented driving factors such as energy intensity could work synergistically across multiple SDGs of the 2030 Agenda.

Carbon efficiency in China: Should we be concerned about the shadow economy and urbanization?

Reducing carbon emissions is critical to achieving a carbon‐neutral world according to the Glasgow Climate Pact, but production, and thus carbon emissions, must continue to meet the needs of the world's growing population. Minimizing carbon emissions per production, that is, increasing carbon efficiency is one way to support the Sustainable Development Goals. Therefore, studying the determinants of carbon efficiency for China, the largest global polluter, is important for zero carbon goals. To this end, this study examines the effects of the shadow economy, globalization, trade openness and urbanization on carbon efficiency using novel dynamic autoregressive‐distributed lag simulations for China during 1990–2018. The empirical results illustrate that (i) the environmental Kuznets curve (EKC) hypothesis is not valid; (ii) Shadow economy, trade openness and urbanization reduce carbon efficiency and (iii) Globalization enhances carbon efficiency. Based on these results, it is suggested that the Chinese government should combat the shadow economy to increase carbon efficiency, regulate unplanned and polluting urbanization in a green manner, reduce carbon intensity in foreign trade, and benefit from environmental technologies provided by globalization.

The critical role of digital technology in sustainable development goals: A two-stage analysis of the spatial spillover effect of carbon intensity

In order to achieve sustainable development goals, China has further increased its goal of reducing carbon intensity and has made digitalization an important support for sustainable development. However, the impact of digitalization on carbon intensity reduction is still unclear. In this context, this paper first evaluates the digitalization level of 30 provincial regions in China and then constructs a spatial Durbin model for two stages, 2012–2015 and 2016–2019, so as to explore the spatial spillover effects of carbon intensity in different stages and the important roles of digital infrastructure and digital inputs in carbon intensity reduction. The main findings are as follows: (1) the current digitization level of each province in China is widely disparate, with the region showing a high level in the east and a low level in the west; (2) carbon intensity reduction has a significant spatial spillover effect, as shown by a 1% reduction in local carbon intensity and a 0.21% reduction in neighboring regions; and (3) digitalization has a more significant positive impact on the reduction in carbon intensity in stage 2. The research results are strong demonstration that digitalization drives sustainable development.

Evaluating energy flexibility requirements for high shares of variable renewable energy: A heuristic approach

Efforts to reduce carbon intensity of electricity involve increasing shares of variable renewable energy (VRE), including a trend towards decentralized generation. Ensuring their high utilization necessitates addressing generation variability at different spatial and temporal scales, likely involving a coordination of multiple systems (e.g. flexible loads, storage, dispatchable generation). This paper presents a methodology for estimating the energy flexibility required from such a synchronized system. The simple data-based approach uses local load and VRE production patterns, and provides a regional assessment considering (1) indicators to evaluate energy flexibility requirements based on VRE self-consumption (2) visualization methods to observe consumption and production patterns’ impact on flexibility requirements across day/week/year and (3) simple algorithms to estimate the energy flexibility requirements at different timescales. The approach is demonstrated for three Swiss distribution system operators, for both current and increased shares of VRE generation. The largest benefits for optimal self-consumption are realized for the energy flexibility timescale of 6–12 h. Medium- and long-term (seasonal) storage appears beneficial at VRE penetration levels beyond 40%. The proposed framework can be readily utilized to assess energy flexibility requirements of different regions, and serve as a basis for identifying a suitable mix of strategies needed to address them.

A multi-objective model for optimizing hydrogen injected-high pressure natural gas pipeline networks

The paper develops a statistical model for optimizing the Hydrogen-injected Natural gas (H-NG) high-pressure pipeline network. Gas hydrodynamic principles are utilized to construct the pipeline and compressor station model. The model developed is implemented on a pipeline grid that is supposed to carry Hydrogen as an energy carrier in a natural gas-carrying pipeline. The paper aims to optimize different objectives using ant colony optimization (ACO). The first objective includes a single objective optimization problem that evaluates the maximum permissible hydrogen amounts blended with natural gas (NG) for a set of pipeline constraints. We also evaluated the variations in operational variables on injecting Hydrogen into the natural gas pipeline networks at varying fractions. The study further develops a multi-objective optimization model that includes bi-objective and tri-objective problems and is optimized using ACO. Traditional studies have focused on single-objective optimization with minimal bi-objective issues. In addition, none of the earlier research has shown the effect of introducing Hydrogen to the NG network using tri-objective function evaluations. The bi-objective and tri-objective functions help evaluate the effect of injecting Hydrogen on different operational parameters. The study further attempts to fill the gap by detailing the modelling equations implemented through a bi-objective and tri-objective function for the H-NG pipeline network and optimized through ACO. Pareto fronts that show the tradeoff between the different objectives for the multi-objective problem have been generated. The primary objective of the bi-objective and tri-objective optimization problems is maximizing hydrogen mole percent in natural gas. The other objective chosen is minimizing compressor fuel consumption and maximizing delivery pressure, throughput, and power delivered at the delivery station. The findings will serve as a roadmap for pipeline operators interested in repurposing natural gas pipeline networks to transport hydrogen and natural gas blend (H-NG) and seeking to reduce carbon intensity per unit of energy-delivered fuel.

Nexus among carbon intensity and natural resources utilization on economic development: Econometric analysis from China

This study employs difference-in-differences (DID) to evaluate the role of China’s green financing policy in deploying a green economy to reduce carbon intensity. This study employs the TVP-VAR data selected from daily indexes from March 20, 2010, to June 2020; this study examines the interconnectedness and spillover relationship between carbon intensity and natural resources development on economic development. According to the first results (one), each year, the green finance and natural resources development deviations from short to long runs are rectified by 88% and 95%, respectively. For every 1% increase in GDP per capita, natural resources development use increases by 0.467 percent and, over time, by 0.311%, according to the second result (two), at the values of 1% and 5%, respectively. Results (three) show that there is a long-term relationship between population density and the usage of natural resources development and that this relationship is statistically significant at the 5% level. According to the findings, a 1% increase in population density caused a long-term drop in green finance energy use of 0.482%. Our findings are crucial for those responsible for implementing energy policies and environmental regulations.